Dinosaurs were on the earth from 250 million to 65 million years ago. They disappeared after a meteorite named Chicxulub (the size of the island of Montreal) hit the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico, and altered the world forever. Evidence of this is found in the geological table with a layer called the K/T line.
Most dinosaurs in Canada have been found in Saskatchewan and Alberta, and the ones represented in the Redpath Museum are the Gorgosaurus (AB) and the Triceratops (SK).
The Gorgosaurus and all carnivores had teeth that replaced themselves every five months! There are ribs along the cervical (neck vertebrae), which are residual in birds, but I wonder if they were protective of the throat structures (it would be useful in a fight).
The Edmontonosaurus was named from where it was found.
The Ankilosaurus is 8-9m long, with scales all over its body. Like most vegetarians, it was heavily armoured.
The Triceratops, like all quadrapeds, is a vegetarian.
Gastroliths are stones they eat that helped them digest food by crushing it between the stone and the stomach wall when the stomach contracts.
I learned before this visit, but only after seeing multiple skeletons in other museums (Eastend, Drumheller, NY Natural History Museum), that fossils are very heavy and fragile, and almost everything we see is a replica. You can touch a fossil of poop, scientifically called copralite!
Birds are the only relative living today. They share the claws, with 3 fingers in front and 1 finger backwards. The bird like dinosaurs had much longer tails to balance their tiny arms.
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| Dinosaur Fossil Craft - Take a dinosaur model. |
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| Press into floral foam, then fill with plaster, and let dry, about an hour. |
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| Fossil! |
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| Dig it out, and brush it off, like a real paleotologist. |
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| Triceratops family |
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| Ostrich skeleton, a reminder that birds, dinosaurs and reptiles are relatives |
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| Edmontonosaurus |
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| Dinorama! |
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| Footprints, skat (coprolite) and enormous phalanges) |
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| A real fossil, not a copy. They weigh a ton! |
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| Dinosaur timeline |
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| Dear Peter Redpath, thank you! |
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